What's in Front of You
by Prisoner of Sorrow
Summary: What if Sakura actually let Sasuke go not as dramatically as she did in the show? But of course left him a very powerful memory of herself....would that affect their futures?
1. Prologue part 1

_Meet me at the orchard._

_Sakura_

Sasuke huffed as he once again read the note that had been secretly put in his towel at training practice but a few hours ago. Such a silly girl, he shook his head, dwelling on that thought. Why was she even trying? She was barely even worth his recognition, let alone his love, if he could love that is…. Their years together in team seven should have made it apparent that he wanted absolutely nothing to do with her or the little innocent village they called home.

Revenge…that was what he really wanted. He wanted justice for every one of his family members' tragic deaths, not some high-strung jaunty stubborn little girl. Why couldn't she get that through her pretty little pink-haired head of hers?

Didn't she know that he was on the verge of starting a new life in the Village of Sound? Didn't she know that he was destined for better, a better life, a better home………a better girl…. Again, why couldn't she realize these simple ideas that he made very apparent every single day? She must be pretty dense if she still hadn't realized that after all the years they had been together in team seven, she still couldn't see that he wanted absolutely nothing to do with her. He was an avenger, a conquer, a warrior, not a friend, and definitely not a lover…..or at least not to her…. Besides what did she want with him anyways? She _probably _only wanted the Uchiha name as her own, just like any other girl he had ever met. That's basically what every other girl wanted, not any one of them really cared about him.

He had never quite realized how short the trip form his apartment to the orchard was until he was face to face with a small cabin lying in the middle of the orchard. He remembered that he, Naruto, And Sakura had spent many a nights on steak-outs there or there just to rest in between shifts of patrolling the village. It was a quaint little cabin consisting of only three rooms, the kitchen and living room adjoined with no barrier and a separate room for them to sleep. Sasuke always hated how Sakura was the one who always got to sleep on the bed while he and Naruto were forced to sleep on the floor. _'Out of courtesy for the lady' _Kakashi would say. Sasuke inhaled deeply, and then knocked on the door. When he did not get an answer he decided to head on right in, and was shocked by the sight that welcomed him.

He was greeted by the unbelievingly enticing sight of Sakura's back, a strip of pale flesh pronounced in the dim lighting as she bent down to reach for something. He breathed in deeply once more to restrain himself from going over there and grabbing a hold of her. The scent of a barely existent fire flooded the room. The fire's lighting did anything and everything to amplify the smooth milky texture of her skin. Tonight she wasn't wearing her normal training attire. Instead she donned a long sleeve crimson blouse and simple white skirt and yet it gave her a more mature aura, as if she had steeped out of their daily routine just for him. Sasuke shook his to rid himself of the ridiculous thought. Why would she bother?

She had apparently had not heard him enter the cabin. He cleared his throat loudly with authority. She slowly turned his way and he could have sworn his heart skipped a beat.

The rich tan lighting of the small cabin settled on her peaceful face, heightening her allure. Long dark lashes lifted to reveal sparkling emerald eyes, eyes that for some reason looked a lot more at peace than he had ever seen them in his life. She seemed so calm and serene. What was wrong with her? Usually she was childish, noisy, and just as the many times he had stated (even to her face) annoying. Why was she acting as if she were another person?

"I didn't think you'd show."

At first her voice startled him for a moment. It held such innocence that it called towards him, yet he held his ground. When had she become this appealing? And then it hit him. Why did he show? He could have easily ignored the note and left for the Village of Sound right after training. Why the hell was he here?

Deciding not to look like a fool, he spoke up, "Hn."

It wasn't much, he knew, but he had no other thing to say to her. He was still trying to regain his composure. Lord, when had this girl gotten so attractive?

"Yes," her voice sounded so fragile, "…..here, you might need this."

She quickly turned to retrieve a navy blue bag from behind her. She held it out in front of her, offering it to him. Sasuke took it hesitantly, his hands brushing against hers for a short moment. For that moment he could have sworn he felt her cringe back, as if in fear.

Curious as to see what was inside the dark bag, he unzipped it. The first thing he noticed in the bag was a first aid kit. He shook his head at her gesture. She'd thought he'd get hurt- like that would happen. Next in the small satchel came a couple changes of clothes that looked similar to the clothes he used to face off with Gaara. And the last item…he wished he could laugh. How could have she have possibly known? At the bottom of the bag along with some food lay a bag of tomatoes. She smiled at his surprised expression. And just as soon as it had appeared, it vanished. He had never realized how uplifting even the faintest of her smiles were.

Resuming his normal stoic expression, he lifted his head to face her. Her countenance reflected a hint of satisfaction and a whole lot of another indescribable emotion. He knew it would have been nice to thank her for her generosity, but instead the gruff words of

"Is that all?" came tumbling out.

She hadn't even reacted roughly towards him as he full expected. Instead she offered a small smile and murmured, "One more thing."

Drawing a small silver heart shaped locket from her back pocket, she pulled his collar down suddenly to wind it around his neck. With the utmost care she snapped the clasp into place. He looked down to admire the locket and it gleamed under the tan lighting of the room. Abruptly, he brought his head back up, but not before getting a whiff of her strawberry scented hair- never again would that scent escape his senses. Inquisitively, he cautiously opened the locket.

A picture of team seven when they had first become genins was plastered on the left side of the heart, while a recent picture of Naruto, Kakashi, and Sakura sitting on the balcony at the formal chunin banquet lay in the right side of the heart. Five years had transpired between both pictures. The changes of facial features had changed quite a bit he had noticed when comparing the pictures.

One thought stilled him. He couldn't help but think- wasn't she sad that he was leaving? Didn't she want him to stay? Did she even care about him leaving their village probably never to return?

Eyes cold and distant he spoke roughly, "Aren't you going to stop me from leaving?"

An angelic grin played across her lips.

"No," she answered easily. She had said it so casually; he couldn't help but wonder why. A distant thoughtful look claimed her eyes before she sighed deeply. Once she had reverted her attention towards him, her eyes glowed angelically.

"I figured out something today," she cast her head down, refusing to meet him eye to eye, "….you won't be happy here in the village, no matter what anyone says or does," she drew in a sharp breath, "…you're not supposed to live a normal life. You're supposed to avenge your clan and I know you will stop at nothing to achieve that," bringing her head back up, she smiled at him. "And all I wanted to do was wish you good luck with your goal"

Truth be told he hadn't heard much of what she had said except for the main points. Instead he had found her lips very interesting; the way her tongue curled when she pronounced her "S's", or the way it took refuge at the roof of her mouth when she pronounced her "L's". It wasn't until she finished her small speech that a sudden question popped into his mind.

"Sakura…..do….. do you love me?"


	2. prologue part 2

1:30

"No……. I… don't."

She said it as if she had been dwelling on the answer if the question would arise. She turned around, her back towards him. He saw her clench her fists at her sides, then release as if she were getting rid of some kind of indescribable tension.

"I do care about you, but not under any circumstances love you."

The words seemed so foreign and cryptic. What was she getting at? He was confused to say the least. He wanted know why she was being so quiet, so submissive, so…..innocent. This wasn't the Sakura he saw by day. He wanted the normal Sakura back and now. Maybe if he drawled her out with an insult?

"Ah… I see…..think you're too good for an Uchiha. Well….you're not…..you're not even worth my time. You're nothing but a pathetic little girl," he threw in a _'You're annoying' _to round off his insult. Once done, he froze, preparing himself for any physical pain he was almost positive she was going to inflict on him, but it never came.

She merely folded her arms around her bosom defensively and shut her eyes thoughtfully. Lifting her chin proudly she answered, "That may be true at the moment, but I plan on changing that fact."

She was defending herself if only a little bit- that meant the old Sakura wished to resurface. The Sakura he saw by day was defiant and rebellious. If only he could break the barrier and set that Sakura free. Then perhaps he could have a real conversation with her. First he'd have to rouse more anger out of her.

"I don't see who you're trying to fool, because you sure don't impress me. Try as you might little Sakura will never amount to anything," Sasuke knew that would draw her out. He chuckled mockingly for effect as well as got closer towards to her to repeat his insult only centimeters from her face.

She sharply turned her head from him, aiming to turn away from his eyes. Those judging deep obsidian eyes were too intimidating.

"Sasuke-kun…..please…please leave….now," She said in such a pained voice; it made him ache. I made him ache to hold her. Perhaps he overdid it…. Nevertheless he saw the beginnings of tears well up in the corner of the one eye that was visible to him. He was shocked above all things. The usually weak yet resolute Sakura that he had grown up with was….crying. Wait a minute…… she wasn't….. He saw her bite back her tears and finally face him, anger and pain conjoined as one in the sea of viridian he called her eyes.

She stepped closer to him to the point where he could feel heat radiate off her petite body and smell the delicious peppermint smell of her breath. Her brows narrowed in anger and her mouth twitched in agitation. He could almost feel her eyes burn a hole right through him. He was getting back his…er.. the old fiery Sakura back. She had never looked so mad, and at the same time he had never ever seen her look so hot.

"Sasuke-kun…are you deaf?" She was yelling now and he was loving every second of it. _'Heh……she looks sexy when she's mad' _Sasuke smirked down in her direction and towered over her (over the years he was glad to find out that he was indeed at least a foot taller than her). He saw her features gain an even more irritated countenance.

"SASUKE-KUN you heartless prick leave already," she shouted angrily. She made a move to punch his chest, but he stopped her and grabbed a hold of her arm and brought her closer towards him unsure of embracing her or not; time decided to come to sudden halt. He could hear the whisper of pitter pattering rain drops collide with the cabin window and thunder overhead. A usually calming sound, and yet it seemed to add more tension to the room.

He could also hear Sakura panting heavily in anger, chest heaving as she tried to gulp down oxygen to calm herself. He watched as she brought her head up slowly, turn to her side and narrow her eyes.

"Let….go…..of me," she whispered harshly through clenched teeth. She was dangerous, he knew this. She may be weak, but she argued that brains always persevered over brawn, and in her case it was always true. She was clever, too clever for her own good sometimes. He'd have to be delicate in this situation if he wanted to get what he wanted, except….Uchihas are never delicate. _'No matter' he smirked._ He briefly wondered if he could delay his trip to Sound if only a few hours.

"Betcha can't look me in the eye and tell me you won't miss me, Sakura," Sasuke mocked closely to her face, eyes shining and his trademark smirk plastered across his face.

She went quiet for a moment as if deeply contemplating her answer, her head cast down as she thought. He saw her sigh aloud before turning towards him, raising her chin towards him, meeting him eye to eye. He would never admit that her emerald were hypnotizing to gaze at. They glimmered even more brightly with fragments of unshed tears; tears held back by a strong girl er…woman with an even stronger will.

Sasuke looked at her thoroughly. Flawless ivory skin, an ample blossom, a small waist and hips, long creamy legs, and even more conspicuously seen- pink velvet looking lips concluded his inspection of the young cherry blossom. She had grown attractive through their five years together and had adjusted _quite nicely _to her body, he couldn't help but notice.

"Sasuke are you even listening?"

Sasuke whipped his head back to her face, mouth ajar. He licked his lips nervously. He had been checking out Sakura and hadn't even noticed; what was coming over him?

"I said I won't miss you," Sakura repeated with confidence, that even Sasuke believed her, if only for a second.

"Like hell you won't," Sasuke snapped back. He spun her quickly towards himself, pulling her back against his broad chest tightly.

"Like hell…..you won't," Sasuke whispered huskily in her ear. He brought a kiss to the side of her pale neck and suckled there for moment. He felt her strain not to let out any sound, but when a small whimper sounded, he felt triumphant. Leaving a hot trail of kisses back to ear he whispered, "You will miss me cherry blossom."

"Sasuke-kun……please don't."

**Sorry for the late update. Hope u like it, and I plan on making the next chapter….**_**more interesting….**_


	3. Final Part of Prolouge

_I know my updates aren't exactly very fast or consistent, but I always will update; keep that in mind. So here's another addition to 'What's in Front of You'. One tidbit of info: This is my first lemon So if you think it sucked, I tried and I will try to better next time. I made it short for a reason; I wanted to make the moment a little foggy for a reason. Oh and of course I don't own anything but the story plot._

He had never dreamed she would taste as good as this, so …...heavenly, so pleasing, so……his. In all of his nineteen years of living he had never seen a woman as beautiful as her, as captivating as the goddess before him. She was inexperienced- he could tell but with that considered it made her appealing as ever.

She mewled and whimpered as his feather-light kisses journeyed downward. He was doing this on purpose. He wished to avoid her mouth as much as possible; he wished to avoid her kisses. They were abundant with a passion he had never known and quite frankly he was a bit frightened. They were filled with commitment (no matter how much she had denied it earlier) and a will to care- two things an Uchiha, in all of history, had never possessed. Her kisses were unbelievable and _very _additive.

"Sasuke-kun……" she breathed helplessly.

As if the woman couldn't get any more arousing. He loved the way she said his name, the way his name floated gently across her incredibly alluring full cherry pink lips. It was simply the most sensual thing he had ever witnessed. How was he going to resist her lips if she continued to say his name so sexily? He decided he'd have to distract himself from her lips, that'd have to be the only way to avoid them.

He captured her breast in one sweep of his tongue and not too soon did he feel her clutch his head to her torso, her small hands weaving themselves in his long raven hair. She gently pulled his hair every so often as he continued to torture one breast as he skillfully kneaded the other. Sasuke paused for a moment before switching towards the other, bent on driving her over the edge. She called his name once more as one of his fingers made way to her core. Slowly, in and out, his finger traveled deep. Hearing her strangled cry of approval, he added a second finger.

"Sasuke-kun…..please….."

He departed from her breast and looked her straight in the eye, smirking at his victory. His cherry blossom's eyes were clouded with desire and fear all enrolled into one, making he face seem so innocent and undeniably seductive. So his prize wanted more, so be it. However she'd have to earn it.

"Huh….. what was that Sakura?" he asked tauntingly, " What do you want?"

At that particular moment he drove his fingers even deeper than before, tearing a loud cry of pleasure from the writhing cherry blossom beneath him, her emerald eyes shut tightly to sharp slits. He smirk widened even more- if possible.

"I want you……," Sakura murmured barely above a whisper, her breathing uneven and ragged.

"What was that cherry blossom?" he sneered, as he continued to move his fingers faster. He wanted a rise out of her.

"I want…………" she hesitated.

"Yes…….." Sasuke jeered.

"YOU! Sasuke, I want you………" she practically screamed.

At hearing her reply Sasuke plunged himself inside her unmercifully. He drove deeper and deeper despite her cries of pain and discomfort. She was a virgin, she _was _pure…….something Sasuke would never understand. The deeper he drove the more satisfied he felt…. …and at the same time the more tears she shed.

"Right answer, cherry blossom," Sasuke whispered darkly in her ear.

She was so tight, he couldn't control himself anymore- not that he had much before he had even approached her. Her whimpers and screams to stop were what drove him forward. She maybe begging him to stop, but her face depicted something differently entirely.

He heard give a loud moan before he felt her contract around him violently, squeezing him to climax. Giving a thunderous strangely animalistic growl he spilt himself inside her, then collapsed atop her, panting like a wild dog. She was, likewise, out of breath.

No movement. No words needed to be said. Sasuke avoided her eyes; Sakura closed hers to avoid him. Time transpired slowly and awkwardly between them.

Once it was safe to say that Sakura was fast asleep, Sasuke rose and began to dress himself, occasionally sneaking a few peaks at his cherry blossom on her bed. Finally securing the last strap of his shoes; he straightened himself up, threw the bag she had made him over his shoulder, and did what any normal sensible Uchiha would do.

He left……….


	4. An Odd Sensation: I

_7 years later……_

A bright light shone above him, contrasting his form from the shadows in the confinement where he resided. He tried to move but found his body unable to. Bound to the chair where he sat, he squirmed uncomfortably. His sharp binds ate away at him painfully. He didn't have to check to already know there would be red marks after he was set free…..that was if he ever was going to be set free. He tried to move his head up, but found it very painful. A light sting sunk in because of the low hanging bright light _slightly _above him. He desperately looked forwards trying to catch a glimpse of his captor, sweat threatening to fall from his brow. Never had he ever felt so helpless.

His captor made no sudden movements or sounds. He merely sat there on elevated on a seat of power in the shadows, an apparently permanent malicious grin plastered upon his face. His hands in a pondering position, he stared. His face was hid in the shadows except for his pair of ruby red lips that seemed tantalizingly intimidating. He saw his captor visibly sink into his seat, murmuring quietly to the council around him. It was then that Sasuke finally noticed there were many people in this rather small room._ 'No wonder the lack of oxygen.' _Then he finally saw him sit upright, then stand, as if the council around him had finally reached a verdict.

"Uchiha Sasuke, look at me straight in the eye,"

A woman's voice! Good Lord! A woman had caught and bound an Uchiha! What was the world coming to?

"Uchiha! Look at me in the eye, boy."

'_Boy? Who did this hag think she was, anyway? Hokage?'_

It was then that he saw his captor's form completely. She first showed a shapely leg clad in rather high pumps that didn't look too comfortable, next came a bodacious body with an ample bosom. Finally he saw his captor's face. Golden blonde hair, intense hazel eyes, and the previously seen crimson ruby red lips, looked at him with a murderous intent. She grined at him maliciously.

----------

"Mommy, can we please get this cereal, please?"

A pair of bright jade eyes, much like her own, stared back at her twinkling with hope. She knew she could never refuse those adorably naïve eyes. She sighed under breath.

"Sure Taku."

"Thanks mom!" The boy quickly hugged her tight before quickly running off again, this time towards the bakery portion of the store.

"Fast little thing isn't he?" a voice sounded in front of her. She looked up, and smiled faintly, nodding. "What kind of cereal did he want anyways…." reaching into the cart he grabbed the cereal box. "Captain Yuki's Outer Space Flakes……" he read aloud. He gave a puzzled face before letting out a small chuckle not too soon afterwards.

Sakura was about to laugh as well until she felt something…….someone. Someone was watching them, but from where? She discreetly shifted her eyes around her. Nothing but an old woman and a store clerk toting around a large crate of goods answered her question, not exactly a threat. Then what was this presence? Where was it coming from? Most importantly, why was she the only one who could sense it?

"Hey Sakura…." A hand waved in front of her face to bring her back to reality. Sakura shifted her eyes back to her present companion. If he didn't see anything, than perhaps she was overeating. "A little zoned out there, huh, Princess?"

"Yeah, sorry."

Her companion merely grinned and pulled an arm around her shoulder, drawing her close. He was warm and comfortable to lean upon. If she had met him back when she was seventeen and easily manipulated to love someone, then she would have easily fallen in love with him in a heartbeat. If only he were attracted to woman. _'What a shame……'_

"Uncle Sai! Look! Come check this out, Uncle Sai!"

Sakura watched as her son tore Sai away from her and dragged him by the arm to a large movie poster, its theme clearly having to do with outer space. Sakura smiled. She could never quite figure out her son's fixation with the unknown, but she was always glad to see him excited. Lord knows she hadn't felt excited in ages……

She froze. God, there it was again. That feeling…..what the hell is it? Sakura cocked her head to one side and scanned her surroundings. Again nothing threatening met her line of vision. She was getting frustrated. Her senses never lied. Something is here. Annoyed with her lack of detection, she shut her eyes and focused chakara to the irises of her eyes, then opened them slowly. Her usually jade eyes glowed a rich neon emerald color. She once again scanned her surroundings, this time with more precision. Sakura grit her teeth, a homicidal intent was being sent out…

" Taku! Sai! Time to go!" Sakura shouted. Her boys obeyed her immediately. Sakura rarely raised her voice, but when it was raised, it meant something, something usually not good.

"You alright there, Princess?"

They were in the video store. Sai had sensed Sakura was on edge about something and suggested going there after getting their groceries. It was Friday after night all: "Movie Night" as Taku called it. The moment they had reached the entrance of the store, Taku was already running to the science fiction portion of the store, leaving Sai and Sakura alone.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

He could sense the false sweet baffled tone of her voice. Sakura was good at deception, it being a large portion of her job for the Hokage, but she couldn't fool Sai. He had been around her long enough to know when she was lying or telling the truth. The way you could physically tell she was lying was his secret: the way she held herself in a proud manner, either using an baffled idiotic voice or using voice that sounded as if she had just insulted you or told you off. That was her trick and he had recently figured it out a couple weeks ago.

Sai looked at her crucially. She was bothered by something that was apparent. Her eyes were glowing emerald. She only used that specific technique when she felt threatened or felt the need to feel even more alert than usual. She was tense and on guard. What did she expect was going to jump out at her? Sai smiled. Whatever it was she could probably kick its ass single handed, with her eyes closed. He pitied whatever was after Sakura. Deciding to change the subject he called her attention once more.

"Sakura, how about this movie?"

Sakura turned to Sai catching a glimpse of the title he had selected. She gave a shaky smile.

"The Last Kiss, Sai? I don't think so Casanova. Remember Taku's going to want to watch _'all' _the movies we rent together. Try to pick something not too sexually stimulating," Sakura answered, the last sentence voiced in a sarcastic tone.

"Alright, a clean movie….." with that Sakura watched as Sai disappeared behind some shelves father away from her. Shaking her head absentmindedly at her friend's antics, she turned to face the movie cover she had been previously reading.

Then she felt it again, that odd sensation of being watched. This time she was determined to find out what was watching her. She quickly switched chakara to her pupils, once again making them glow emerald. She felt a bit light headed in doing so, reminding herself that that particular technique wasn't supposed to be used that frequently in one day for such a londg duration. She grit her teeth, forcing the throbbing pain away. She brought her chin down and attempted to look over her left shoulder.

Her breath hitched. She gulped dryly. No that couldn't be. She quickly walked away. It wasn't possible, but try as she might; she couldn't deny the dark aura she sensed coming forth from the dark shadow in the corner of the store or the scarlet eyes that watched her every move. She moved to take another step from the dark silhouette and her head throbbed with a skull splitting pain before her foot even made contact with the ground. She clenched her teeth as she tried to draw in a breath. However, all the noise surrounding her began to fade. Her moves became sluggish and her eyes began to droop. What was happening to her? Before she could even begin to answer the question her world grew fainter and fainter until all she could see was black.


	5. A Serious Killer

I AM PISSED OFF BEYOND BELIEF, AND I'M NOT USUALLY ONE WITH A TEMPER THAT EASILY FLARES. WHAT I'M MAD ABOUT IS THAT NO MATTER HOW MANY SPACES I PUT IN BETWEEN PARAGRAPHS (I PUT 5 FOR GOD'S SAKES), MY PARAGRAPHS ARE STILL CRAMMED TOGETHER TIGHTLY AND IT LOOKS SO MESSY AND UNATTRACTIVE TO READ. I USE MICROSOFT WORD BUT THAT ISN'T WORKING, IF YOU HAVE ANY TIPS TO SPACE MY CHAPTERS MORE, please tell me in a review or message. Please!

ENJOY.

"Sakura….."

"Sakura….."

"Sakura?"

Her eyes flickered frantically trying to adjust to the bright light. She could hear voices, many of them above her, though one of them she could already recognize as her son's. She could never forget his voice. Opening her eyes fully she found the worried faces of Taku, Sai, and Temari hovering over her, as well as the faint shadow of Kankuro brewing what smelled like an exotic tea in her kitchen. She sighed deeply and shut her eyes as she drifted back to a sleep flooded with relief. No one had died and she was home, safely home; though in her current weak condition she had missed the shadow that loomed at her window smirking devilishly….

She felt so relaxed, so soothed, dare she even say pampered. Though, her life wasn't supposed to be filled with luxury. On the contrary it was supposed to be filled with the grief, mourning, and the regret that had plagued her those many years ago. And yet……she felt the exact polar opposite. Unlike the sadness she experienced at least once every other day to the point where she sometimes had to dip into her medicine bottle to alleviate it, she felt content and that contiguously alarmed her. Her jade orbs shot open immediately, dilating to the dim golden lighting of the room. It was in her opinion at least nine o'clock. Even so, she had slept for that long?

She scanned her surroundings on instinct. She was home that was apparent as everything from the furniture to the kitchen looked familiar. She paused her investigation as soon as she felt someone stroking her hair ever so softly. Such soft hands journeyed through each strand of her pastel rose tresses tenderly, so tenderly, that it frightened her. She attempted to pull up into a sitting position, but her attempt was instantaneously foiled by a strong hand against her stomach, once again flattening her to the couch and pulling her back onto the lap that had previously cradled her head.

"Easy there, Princess……"

She looked up towards the origin of the soft hands and soothing voice and surprisingly found Sai grinning gently at her. She had never noticed how dark and rich his eyes were. Those onyx pools flooded with so much emotion, that she had to stifle a gasp. However, their moment didn't last very long as she felt her legs being suddenly hoisted up to rest on someone else's lap. She looked towards her feet and found her legs resting on Kankuro's lap as he quietly drank a mug of what smelled like green tea. Sakura looked at him curiously, her face quirked in a cute questioning contour.

After a while he finally noticed her quizzical glance, turned his face towards her, and quirked a boyish smile.

"I'd like to sit on the couch too, Sakura, and I'm pretty sure you don't want me sitting **on** your feet," he spoke in a playful manner.

She grinned, as if she were laughing quietly to herself. She laid back against Sai and deeply sighed. All was well……for now at least. She looked to the clock and read it. _'eleven o'clock' _It was…..kinda late, though she was accustomed to going to sleep at much later times, or even going countless days without a wink of sleep. But tonight…….for some odd reason she felt tired and unbelievingly drowsy. She moved to get off Sai and much to her discomfort she felt all her blood rush to her head. Lightheaded, she once again fell against Sai. He naturally caught her and she felt the vibration of his chest as he chuckling behind her.

"Careful there, Princess…… I think its time for you to get to bed."

Without warning she felt his strong arms wrap themselves around her calves steadily and in what seemed like a second she was in his arms, once more, being carried as if she were a bride being carried by her prince charming. And for a moment Sai was her prince charming, and just as quick as the thought arrived it floated away with an even faster speed.

He carried her the short distance from the living room to her room and gently lowered her head against her pillow before setting her legs on her bed. Once done, he drew the covers to her chin and tucked them under her to ensure warmth. But what she didn't expect was him crawling up next to her. Lying on his side and her on her back, he stared at her with hypnotic eyes.

"Will you be ok for the rest of the night?"

He spoke so suddenly she almost for got to answer.

"Yeah, I'll be alright."

This side of Sai was rarely seen. Sure he was compassionate, but affectionate……not quite as much. Though he was her friend……… she greatly appreciated his concern. He could be both the sides of a best friend: the funny friend who says the most inappropriate things at the most inappropriate times and the loving friend who would be concerned when need be.

"Alright then………" unlocking his intense stare he climbed out of her bed, and once again brought the cover back to her chin. Placing a kiss on her forehead, he exited the room, closing the door behind him.

Sakura had never felt so restless in the entire twenty-four of her life. She tossed and turned, and then turned some more. She felt like a small child anxiously awaiting Christmas morning. She couldn't seem to stay still, not even for a second. Ughh, what would it take for her to fall to sleep? She took a moment to look outside her window admiring the captivating view. It was pitch black outside with the slightest of grey clouds idly hanging in the dark smokey-like hued sky. The only light that beamed through was the light that beamed directly from the full moon. It bathed her room in dingy grey light, she loved this time of night, and yet she couldn't fall asleep. She heard the loud howl of a wolf.

The she felt it. It was here……. again. This time she felt it with a stronger aura; it was more eager, more eager for blood. She immediately tore the blankets from her and sat up.

A wolf's howl sounded again.

It was coming closer…..

She strained to get away.

Where was it going to strike from?

A wolf's howl sounded again.

_Sa-ku-ra……._

She felt her mind being invaded violently. Each memory and thought was being copied and stolen from her. She couldn't stop it. She couldn't control it. What was happening? She fell to her knees, desperately hoping for the pain to stop, and stop quickly. She grit her teeth and clutched her head. What was happening to her? It felt as if all life was being sucked away from her in the most agonizing way possible. Then she felt a biting sensation on the inside of her wrist. She could even smell blood. She looked at her wrist and found three vibrant scarlet circles tied together in unity. The crimson color obviously was coming from her spilt blood that continued to drip from her wrist. She was being drained. She looked up, and the room seemed to spin. She looked down and the lights dimmed. Soon all she could see was black.

Sakura woke up the next morning with a head splitting headache, the events of the previous night a blur to her. She found herself lying flat on the floor. She could smell the faint aroma of bacon and eggs cooking from the kitchen. The sound of a roster's morning call floated into her room. It seemed as if the happenings of last night hadn't actually happened. She attempted to stand up. With a bit of difficulty she stood up and rubbed her aching head; then she saw it. Her wrist……the mark from last night, it was there…..meaning last night had happened. It wasn't a hallucination.

Before she could go into more depth about the strange mark, she heard the doorbell ring. Not exactly rushing to answer it she made her way to the door. She opened it to find a surprise on the other side.

Neji Hyuga stared at her blankly.

"I've been sent to inform you that you are being targeted, Sakura."

"When haven't I been?" Sakura replied dumbly. It was a known fact that Sakura Haruno was always being targeted by criminals. Her job practically invited that.

"There is a serious killer here…..in Kohona" though remaining serious, there was note of urgency in Neji's voice.

Sakura looked at him crucially, trying to find some sort of implication that he was joking; Neji rarely ever described killers as serious or dangerous. They were simply just criminals meant to be killed by an even more skillful killer, or so he would always say.

"Alright, thank you for informing me." Sakura bowed respectively before closing the door. She took a seat on her couch, the thought still fresh in her mind.

'_hmmm…….A serious killer………..'_


	6. Amethyst Shadow Savior?

_6__th__ chapter_

_Sorry for the late update, its cause I'm working on two stories at the same time. Although here's a question for all the smart readers I have. And please answer, because your answer is important to me. What do you like better in a story, a detailed story with a plot you can figure out the first chapter in, or a detailed story with plot twists that may seem odd now but explain themselves later in the story?_

_Please answer because a reviewer flamed me real bad about that. Even though I can not control people's opinions I think he/she was wrong_

_6__th__ Chapter_

Sakura had yet to leave her room, actually her bed, since Neji's visit. She knew she was in danger. Then again, had there ever been a time when she wasn't in danger? She thrived off danger. She lived for near life death experiences. But now, something seemed…..different the question was why?

Sakura turned to lie on her back. She stared at the ceiling with a vague expression on her face, then she once again turned to her side. Why was she scared? The last time she was scared……..she couldn't even remember the last time. She fidgeted for a moment. A spark ran through her body. And instantly she could remember the last time. It wasn't a pleasant memory or at least not from a seven years in the future stand point. In the back of her mind she wondered if _he _even remembered that night. She sighed deeply. Of course he didn't.

As soon as she had come to that conclusion she felt the pin prick marks on her wrist burn as if trying to convince her otherwise of her conclusion. She grit her teeth and slowly raised herself from her bed. Just an annoying scratch she reasoned and prepared for her day of training.

-----

"Come on Sakura, focus! I've seen you do better!"

Sakura raised her head and got up from the ground from her squatting position. She shook her head and she felt some sweat trickle off her forehead to the ground. However, she failed to see the drops of blood. Nevertheless she smirked and closed her eyes tightly. In an instant she charged after Neji once more, hoping this attempt wouldn't prove to be futile.

Neji side stepped her easily and sent her flying with a quick jab to her back. Sakura had anticipated his move and after being hit ducked to avoid receiving the full impact of the massive blow. Sakura squatted low to the ground and put her head down. In a sense she resembled a cat posed to pounce on its prey. Little did Neji know that, pouncing was the farthest though from her mind at the moment. All through the two and half hours of training, the mark on her wrist burned and continued to burn the more she exerted herself. At first she tried to ignore it, then heal it, then just bite at it thinking that if it bled enough it would eventually stop hurting. None of her plans worked and only made it burn more as if telling her stop pushing herself. She was starting to feel a tad dizzy when a masked anbu arrived.

"Haruno, Hyuga, there has been an attack. It's Orochimaru."

-----

Sakura sped to the center of the Leaf Village. She knew that was where Orochimaru was striking first without even being told by an anbu. That's where he had struck first when she was young during the chunin exams, and over the years Sakura had become better at predicting Orochimaru's plots and figuring his motives. Her wrist burned as if the devil himself were sticking a needle through it, but the thought of her son's safety fueled her to run even faster. She ran and ran until she made it to a clearing where the center of the village could be seen from a high point. She smiled widely.

A monstrous snake with an unimaginably large size slithered through the village.

'_Big snakes. Ah, Orochimaru, you are becoming more and more predictable everyday.'_

Sakura quickly made her way to the center of the village, taking down every sound ninja that stood in her way. She had lost count of how many she killed by the time she reached Orochimaru's serpent. Orochimaru wasn't in plain sight, that was expected, though the adrenaline high she was feeling was just as empowering as if he were right in front of her.

Sakura followed the large snake as it trekked through the village as it smothered some ninja that had not been quick enough to escape death. Through observation Sakura discovered that the snake was lacking agility due to its enormous size. Sakura smirked. Taking down the serpent might be easier than she had originally thought. As Sakura made her way to confront the snake, a shadow loomed over Konoha watching the evil events pan out, though he kept an extra special watch on the pink headed blur that at the moment stood in front of the large snake.

The snake was nearing the school where Sakura's son went. Sakura planned on not letting the snake get an inch closer to her son.

"Hey Sakura, over here," Sakura saw Sai waving at her to reach higher ground. She leapt up to meet him on a building's roof.

"Sakura we had been shooting poison needles at the snake since it has been here. I'm pretty sure it has about 32 gallons of poison traveling in its bloodstream, at least. Kankuro told me that we have to puncture the snake's scale and directly inject this needle into one of its muscles to put it in a deep sleep so we transport it and dispose of it properly."

Sai handed her a fairly large syringe, its back end filled with some kind of purple liquid. Sakura nodded her head as she received the syringe. She knew what had to be done.

Sakura confronted the snake face to face and the shadow that rested upon the cliff behind them watched with an intense stare. Sakura grit her teeth and gripped a kunai in hand. Where would she strike first to break one of the scales? The snake made a move to bite her, but Sakura easily dodged him. The snake was even slower than she thought. She made a break to cut at the snake's throat but leapt at the wrong time and barley dodged the snake's fangs, though they lightly grazed her skin and drew a little blood from her calf.

Sakura landed back to the ground, angry at herself._ 'No more mistakes'_

The shadow watched as Sakura struck the snake each time and weakened it only a bit, but could never quite reach the snake close enough to wound it severely. The shadow smirked from ear to ear and inhaled deeply. Her blood smelled heavenly.

Sakura was close, she knew it. Though her ankle hurt because of landing in the wrong stance previously, she kept on, she had probably only sprained it anyway (she hoped). She was about to plant the needle into the snake when she felt it again. That aura, it was back. Though now it seemed even more bloodthirsty, Sakura's wrist burned even more for that split second. In that moment that Sakura was distracted, she was slammed to the ground by the snake. Sakura almost considered lying on the ground and letting the anbu handle the serpent until she heard a voice.

"MOMMY! HELP! PLEASE HELP MOMMY!"

Her son.

Sakura instantly rose. She could die, but she wasn't going to let her son die. Sakura ignored the pain surging in her body and charged at the snake. She struck its tail with a powerful kick and it let go of her son. The boy was in shock for a moment before he ran off.

"Sai, get Taku and run away, now!" Sakura yelled over her shoulder. In the blood and chaos around them, both males obeyed and ran to safety.

When she had yelled towards her son, she had left herself wide open for an attack for a second, and a second was all the serpent needed to strike. He scooped her up with his tail much like he had done with her son and squeezed tightly. Sakura gritted her teeth as the scales bit away at her skin. She struggled to regain control of the hand that held the syringe. The shadow felt a tiny bit of concern. He had sent the snake to test her not to kill her. Sakura could feel its concern.

Sakura's vision was rapidly fading. She quickly stuck the needle into the snake exposed muscle before collapsing of fatigue.

XxXxXx

Sakura felt as if she were flying. She half opened her eyes and realized she was being carried as her savior sped through the village. She tried to get a good look at her savior, but he was moving to fast for her to see. All she saw was a flash of amethyst before she slipped back into sleep.

XxXxXx

Sakura finally woke. She felt the comforting softness of her couch below her sore body. Wait a second, how did she arrive back at her house, and in piece? Then the vision of her savior came back to her. It was him, he had saved her. She still had a bunch of unanswered question, though.

"You're finally up, Princess. That's good."

Sakura looked up to see Sai's smiling face. He held out a cup of some liquid she did not recognize.

"Take it. It's a family brew my mother taught me to make before she died. It's supposed to sooth the entire body. It's to help your soreness, plus it'll warm you up pretty quick."

Sakura graciously accepted the cup and downed its contents without a word. She gripped the blanket atop her tighter to her body.

"You chipped the bone connected to your ankle by the way. It could have been worse, but Kankuro healed it enough for you to be able to walk on it. Running maybe a little more difficult though."

Sakura said nothing but studied Sai closely.

"How's Takamaru?"

"Taku's fine, just a couple bruises that can be easily taken care of. He already went to sleep."

"How are Kankuro, Temari, and you?"

"Well you should know me by now, Sakura. I'm fine, Kankuro resting up for tomorrow, and Temari's polishing her fan."

Sakura nodded her understanding and took a glance at the clock in her living room. It read 11:30. She suddenly felt tired and wanting sleep.

"I'm going to head off for bed, Sai"

"Alright, Princess, Sleep tight. I'm going to stay up a bit more. If you need anything just call."

Sakura smiled at Sai in gratitude and slowly rose from her couch, mindful of her ankle. She wrapped the blanket around her body tightly and leaned against the wall as she made her way through the hall leading to her bedroom. The blanket slowly dragged on the floor as she limped. When her hand gripped the doorknob of her room, she felt her wrist burn painfully. As she turned the knob she felt the pain intensify tenfold. She felt the aura again as if it were breathing right down her neck. Sakura opened her door. Her room was in complete darkness minus the pair of amethyst eyes that glowed brightly.

Sakura gasped and suddenly drops of blood fell from her wrist in small streams. The shadow she felt, the aura she sensed, her savior, her murderer, they were one in the same and they were right in front of her.

"It's been a while cherry blossom."

"Sasuke……….."


End file.
